Google News 'I had so many opportunities against Roger Federer but...', says former ace
by SIMONE BRUGNOLI | VIEW 8023
As everyone knows by now, Roger Federer will return to the pitch at the Laver Cup. The 2022 edition will be staged at the O2 Arena in London from 23 to 25 September. The former world number 1, who hasn't played an official match for almost a year, will also play at the Basel ATP in the autumn.
The last two seasons have been a real ordeal for the Swiss, struggling with a serious right knee problem, which prevented him from playing as and as much as he would have liked. Suffice it to say that the 40-year-old from Basel played just 13 official matches last year, collecting nine wins and four losses.
The 20-time Grand Slam champion had to settle for the round of 16 at Roland Garros and the quarterfinals at Wimbledon, too meager tally for a legend of his caliber. Hence the decision to undergo knee surgery for the third time and the long rehabilitation.
According to his words, the King intends to play some tournaments also in 2023. However, not everyone is convinced. In a recent interview with 'CLAY', Nikolay Davydenko expressed his opinion on Roger's future.
Davydenko reflects on Federer
"I think Roger Federer is playing in Basel to finish his carrer there.
That's my opinion," Davydenko said. Davydenko also spoke about how Federer was the toughest opponent he faced in his career. "Federer was my toughest opponent. Why? Because his forehand was extremely fast and his serve was very accurate, I could not gain any sort of control against him," Davydenko said.
"I had so many opportunities against Federer, but he was always a much better player near the end of the sets. I had set points, I made it into the tiebreaks, but then i was always loosing. Not in London. That time, I felt like it was my time to beat him, and I got lucky a bit as well," Davydenko said.
Earlier this year, Federer started dropping hints about his comeback. While the Swiss maestro initially refrained from revealing his comeback tournament, fans anticipated his presence at Wimbledon. However, a few weeks ago, Federer finally revealed that he will make his comeback to the tour at the Swiss Indoors Basel.
While Wimbledon has been one of the most successful tournaments for Federer, it is soon set to become a reason for his ranking drop. Roger Federer last played on the tour at the 2021 Wimbledon, suffering a quarterfinal loss to Hubert Hurkacz.